I tried Carrs Pasties’ limited-edition chicken fajita pasty

For me, that’s fajitas.

At least once a week, sometimes twice, I’ll fry off chicken, peppers, and onions before wrapping them in a tortilla.

It’s one of my favourite meals, so when Carrs Pasties unveiled its latest limited-edition creation for the Bolton Food and Drink Festival, I knew I had to give it a try.

As a regular Carrs customer who’s slowly but surely building up points on the bakery’s loyalty scheme, I didn’t need much convincing.

The bakery’s latest special is a Chicken Fajita Pasty, described as a “spicy sensation” and filled with tender pieces of chicken, red pepper and onion in fajita seasoning, wrapped in golden shortcrust pastry and topped with cheddar cheese.

It’s the latest in a line of festival specials from Carrs, which has created limited-edition pasties for the Bolton Food and Drink Festival for several years.

With the festival returning this weekend, it felt only right to make this my first food purchase of the event.

And it’s a very good effort.

One of the biggest dangers with themed pasties is that they can end up tasting like a regular pasty with a fancy name slapped on the wrapper.

This definitely doesn’t.

From the first bite, it’s unmistakably fajita-inspired.

The chicken fajita pasty from Carrs Pasties launched today for the Bolton Food and Drink Festival (Image: Newsquest)

The chicken is nice and tender, just as advertised, while the seasoning delivers exactly what you’d hope for from a good fajita mix.

There’s plenty of flavour throughout and a nice kick without becoming overwhelming.

The red pepper and onion help recreate that familiar fajita taste and, as someone who probably eats more fajitas than any reasonable person should, I’d say Carrs has got it spot on.

What really won me over, though, was the pastry.

The addition of cheddar cheese baked onto the top might sound like a small detail, but it’s probably my favourite part of the whole thing.

It adds an extra layer of flavour and makes the pasty feel genuinely different from the standard options on offer.

In truth, I’d happily eat another one.

However, there is one thing giving me pause.

The chicken fajita pasty from Carrs Pasties launched today for the Bolton Food and Drink Festival (Image: Newsquest)

The price.

The Chicken Fajita Pasty costs £3.45 and, while that might not sound outrageous, the reaction I got when I returned to the office suggested otherwise.

Every person I told let out some variation of: “How much?”

The collective gasp was almost as memorable as the pasty itself.

Now, I appreciate there are reasons behind it.

It’s a limited-edition special.

Time and effort have gone into developing the recipe.

Carrs also has a major presence at the festival in Victoria Square.

But when your usual order is a meat and potato or a steak pasty, both around 50p cheaper, it becomes much harder to justify making the switch regularly.

That’s the challenge this pasty faces.

The flavour is there.

The quality is there.

The originality is there.

The value, I’m not quite so convinced about.

That shouldn’t take away from what Carrs has achieved here, though.

Creating a pasty that genuinely tastes like a fajita is harder than it sounds, and they’ve managed to pull it off without sacrificing what makes a pasty enjoyable in the first place.

It’s packed with flavour, the chicken is excellent, and the cheesy crust is inspired.

Most importantly, it feels like a local bakery trying something creative and different.

And I’d much rather spend my money supporting a Bolton institution than handing it over to one of the big national chains.

In fact, having recently tried Greggs’ much-hyped katsu chicken curry bake, I’d say Carrs’ festival special leaves it firmly in the shade.

Is the Chicken Fajita Pasty worth trying?

Absolutely.

Will I buy another one before the festival ends?

Probably.

Will it replace my beloved meat and potato or steak as my regular order?

At £3.45, probably not.

But for a limited-edition festival treat, it’s a spicy little success.